Man accused of selling steroids to Canby cop arrested on way to court

View full sizeMultnomah County SheriffWilliam TraversoCanby resident William Jake Traverso, accused of supplying steroids to former Canby Officer Jason Deason, was scheduled to appear in Clackamas County Circuit Court at 1:30 p.m. Monday while his attorney argued a pre-trial discovery motion.

But he never made it.

A state police trooper stopped Traverso on his way to court.

He was arrested, accused of driving under the influence of intoxicants, reckless driving, possession of methamphetamine, and violating the conditions of his prior release.

State police senior Trooper Jeremy Richardson stopped Traverso on Interstate 205 southbound near Clackamas, about 1:40 p.m. Police say he tried to pass other motorists on the freeway's shoulder and was making erratic lane changes.

The trooper said Traverso, 38, was driving his Ford F250 pickup at 77 mph in a 55 mph zone. During the stop, two calls came into police from passing motorists advising that the pickup was driving recklessly before it was stopped, according to Lt. Gregg Hastings, state police spokesman.

While taking Traverso into custody, the trooper found a methamphetamine pipe and a small of amount of the drug in his pants pocket, state police said.

The court hearing went on without Traverso. At the close of the approximately three-hour hearing, the judge's clerk informed the attorneys, other witnesses and Traverso's parents, who were in the courtroom. that Traverso was in custody.

"The judge's clerk told he us he'd been arrested," said Michael Wu, a Clackamas County deputy district attorney prosecuting Traverso.

Traverso was booked into the Clackamas County jail Monday, and was released Tuesday morning after posting $750, or 10 percent of his bail.

Traverso had been out of custody since his Feb. 9 arrest at his Canby home, and his mother posted $7,500 then to bail him out, court records show. In connection with the steroid police corruption case, he faces eight counts of drug charges, including possession and distribution of a controlled substance, three counts of first-degree theft and one count of first-degree aggravated theft. As part of his release agreement, he was ordered to have no contact with Deason, not to leave the state without court permission and not commit any crimes.

"We're not going to make any decisions on whether or not to revoke his release until I see the police reports," Wu said Tuesday.